Congress leaders were hoping that he would be back for the planned agitation on 16 March against amendments to Land Acquisition Bill. While the party was protesting on Delhi streets today, the man in question was found Missing in Action

Why Prateek Kuhad from Delhi is one of those singers who stands out despite the clanging of cutlery at a club and rises above the loud chatter of suits at the bar who have no interest in music whatsoever

Digital India will transform India and democracy through a more effective citizen-government engagement, will usher transparency in governance, take the government to the remotest villages and citizens

It is easy to be taken in by the decorative elegance of Raza’s work. But once you begin to look beyond the formal beauty of his work, you encounter a stubbornly abstract language, refusing to yield its mysteries

Says Laurent Léger, a Charlie Hebdo journalist who survived the attack on the magazine, of his colleagues who were killed to Open contributor SAMANTHA DE BENDERN who finds in today’s France a threat to national symbols

Once a Double Niner, always a Double Niner. So say soldiers of the 99th Field Regiment of the Indian Army, which was awarded the title ‘Sylhet’ for its gallantry in the 1971 War for the liberation of Bangladesh. First raised in Aurangabad as the 99th Mountain Composite Regiment (Towed) on 15 April 1964, it is remembered for its role in obtaining the surrender of Pakistani forces after a 25-day gun battle during the war. As this 20-minute documentary shows, the Double Niners were masters of tactical manoeuvres, a tradition they still try their utmost to uphold.

Alam is the co-founder of the Muslim League, the hardline faction of the Hurriyat Conference. Beyond the politics, and the facts of his arrest and his life, and his own agenda, there are stories of ordinary people

Priyanka Chopra slipped into Gunday instead, earning brownie points with the producer. And Bang Bang, whose shooting dates originally clashed with Gunday, has been endlessly delayed, with filming only likely to start in June now.

Industry pundits are saying Katrina is no longer in Aditya’s ‘good books’, and she might have shot herself in the foot by turning down Gunday, where she would have been cast opposite younger heroes Ranveer Singh and Arjun Kapoor. “Working so frequently with the Khans and with Hrithik, her ‘screen age’ has become considerably more than her real age. Unlike Deepika and Anushka, Katrina doesn’t have films opposite younger actors like Ranbir, Imran and Shahid. It wouldn’t have hurt to do a film that would bring down her screen age,” explains a respected film producer.

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Tears of Luck

Deepika Padukone may have known Ayan Mukerji from the time he directed her then-boyfriend Ranbir Kapoor in Wake Up Sid, but when she worked with the 29-year-old director on Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani recently, she reportedly received no favours on account of their old friendship. In fact, the actress told me she got quite an earful from Ayan on the first day of shoot when she “jokingly” made a comment that he didn’t appreciate. “He really let me have it,” she says, now smiling at the memory.

At the time, however, the actress burst into tears following the public dressing down she received and had to be pacified by Ayan and Ranbir (who stars opposite her in the film) before she could resume filming. It didn’t help that they were filming in the freezing cold of Manali on a snow-capped mountain, where every minute spent not shooting was another minute allowing the chill to get into their bones. “I was okay soon, but it really threw me off initially, getting yelled at in front of the whole unit,” Deepika recounts. “I guess what upset me most was that Ayan didn’t realise I was only joking; he got mad at me for a joke.”

Not an auspicious way to start a film, some would say. “Well, Farah [Khan] made me cry on my first day on Om Shanti Om,” Deepika reveals cheekily. Didn’t really hurt that movie, did it? Might even turn out to be a lucky charm.

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To Act or Not To Act

For years dismissed as a non-actor, this good-looking leading man insists he’s finally been vindicated by the success of his latest film, even though feedback on his own performance was, at best, mixed. He’s been lashing out at critics, saying things like: “I’m sorry I’ve proven you wrong!” and “Ouch, it must hurt that you couldn’t keep me down.”

His confidence and cockiness may come from the fact that his next release is a serious thriller directed by an awards-darling; a film that the star is convinced gives him enough scope to flex his acting muscles. But someone ought to remind him of that old adage of speaking too soon. Encouraged by his recent success, he goes next into filming the sequel of a blockbuster ‘brainless comedy’ that will more than likely have critics drawing their daggers again.

It is easy to be taken in by the decorative elegance of Raza’s work. But once you begin to look beyond the formal beauty of his work, you encounter a stubbornly abstract language, refusing to yield its mysteries